Theodor hentgen



l PATENTED JAN. 5,1904. T. HENTGEN. BOTTLE STOPPBR.

Patented January 5, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

THEODOR HENTGEN, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

B oT'TLE-STOPPER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 749,060, dated January5, 1904. Application led September 28,1903. Serial No. 174.964. (Nomodel.)

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, THEoDoE HENTGEN, of

NewYork,in the countyofNew York and State of New York, have inventedcertain new and usefullmprovementsin Bottle-Stoppers; and I herebydeclare that the following is a full, clear, and exact descriptionthereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which formpart of this specification.

This invention is an'improvement in bottle-stopping devices,particularly detachable or non-permanent Stoppers, although my devicemay be permanently fastened to bottles, if desired. The invention isparticularly designed for use in connection with bottles containingcarbonated, fermentitious, or aromatic liquids after the original sealsor stoppers have been removed,so'that the remaining contents ofpartially-emptied bottles can be kept in excellent condition for a longtime, while without some suitable stopper such contents would be ruined.y

My device is self-adjusting, is locked when sealed by means of a spring,and when released the stopple will automatically swing out of the waywhen the bottle is properly tilted to pour its contents therefrom, butthe stopple will automatically drop back into position to closethe'bottle lightly when the latter is set upright.

The form and size of the device may be varied to suit the form of thebottle or vessel to which it is applied, and the accompanying drawingsillustrate the invention as adapt-ed to an ordinary long-neck bottle,which will suiiice to impart a clear understanding of the invention inconnection with the following description, and I refer to the claims forsummaries of the novel features and combination of partsfor which I askprotection.

in said drawings, Figure l is a side View of my improved bottle-stoppingdevice attached to a bottle-neck, showing the stopple in closed andlocked position in full lines and in released position in dotted lines.Fig. 2 is a side view showing the position assu med by the stopple whenthe bottle is tilted. Fig. 3 is a top view of Fig. l. Fig.` 4 is an edgeview of Fig. l, and Fig. 5 is a View of the device detached and partlyin section.

The device comprises a stopple, a support therefor,

toggle-lever devices for actuating' the stopple, and means for attachingthe support to a bottleneck. The stopple, as shown, consists of a metaldisk A, having a central upstanding pin a, by which the disk is looselyhung from the inner end of a lever B. The under side of the disk A maybe faced with cork, rubber, or other compressible material which willmake a close fit when pressed against the mouth of a bottle. A helicalspring a' is interposed between the lever B and stopple A around pin a,as shown.

The lever B is pivoted on a standard C, which is supported at bottom onclamp D, that engages the neck of the bottle. This may be a clamp-ring;but to facilitate the attachment and detachment of the device I showthis clamp as slightly more than semicircular in plan and curved so asto closely fit the neck V of the bottle just below the rim or collar othereof, as shown, so that said clamp can be readily sprung onto orremoved from the bottle-neck. v

The standard is so proportioned as to length that the stopple A willrest easily on the mouth of the bottle when the clamp is up against thecollar o.

'Ihe outer end of lever B is pivoted at bto one end of a locking -leverE, which is pivotally connected a short distance from lever B, as at e,to the upper end of a link or links F, which are pivoted at their lowerends to the standard C adjacent to the clamp, as shown.

The free end e of lever E may be curved outward for convenience inoperating it. TheV lever E and links F forma toggle connection betweenthe outer end oflever B and standard C, this toggle being shortened whenthe lever E is swung outward and extended when lever E is swung inward.When lever E is swung inward, extending the toggle, the outer end oflever B is raised and its inner end forced down upon spring ct',compressing the latter more or less and seating the stopple A tightly onthe mouth of the bottle and securely sealing the latter. The spring aperforms two functions-first, itaffords a yielding connection betweenthe disk and lever B, so that the stopple is automaticallyself-adjusting and will compensate itself for slight differences in thedistances between the collars o and mouths of bottles; second, thespring serves IOC TSP

to automatically lock the toggle when it is fully extended,for, as willbe observed by reference to Fig. l, when leverE is pushed fully down thepivot e passes inside a direct line between pivots b and f. Consequentlythe spring a', acting on lever B,holds the toggle in such position. Whenlever E is raised sufciently to move pivot e outside a direct linebetween pivots b andf, the spring a. will throw the parts into theposition indicated in dotted lines, Fig. l, thus relieving the pressureon stopple A, which will then close the month of the bottle by gravity.If now the bottle be tilted, as shown in Fig. 3, the stople A will swingout and away from the mouth of the bottle, allowing the contents thereofto escape without interference, and when bott le is stood upright againthe stopple will lightly drop back and close the mouth, or by pushingupward on the outer end e' of lever E the disk A can be thrown back, asindicated in Fig. 2, when the bottle is upright.

From the foregoing description it will be seen that the device iscompact, neat, and effective. It can be readily attached to or removedfrom any ordinary bottle or vessel for which it is designed. It isself-adjusting to slightly-variant sizes and lengths of necks. It sealslightly automatically. It is self-locking when forcibly sealed. Whenused on vessels containing carbonated liquids or fermenting liquids, itwill act as a safety-valve,

for by reason of the spring-seating of stopple A the latter wouldordinarily yield before the accumulated pressure would burst the vessel.

I do not restrict myself to a detachable stopping device except Where sonominated in the claims, and

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. A bottle-stopping device, comprising a stopple for the mouth of thebottle, a lever, a compressible spring connection interposed betweensaid stopple and lever, a standard supporting said lever detachablyattached to the bottle-neck, a nger-lever pivoted to the outer end ofthe first lever, and links pivotally connected to said finger-lever andthe standard for oscillating and holding said lever.

2. A bottle-stopping device comprising a semicircular clamp detachablyattached to the neck of the bottle, a standard rising from said clamp, alever pivoted on said standard, a stopple on the inner end of the lever,a finger-lever pivoted to the outer end of said lever and linkspivotally connected to the finger-lever and the standard whereby thestopple may be forcibly seated on the mouth of the bottle, substantiallyas described.

3. In a bottle-stopple, the combination of a clamp, a standard risingtherefrom, a lever pivoted to the upper end of the standard, av

stopple suspended from the inner end of said lever adapted to close themouth of the bottle, a projecting nger-lever pivotally connected to theouter end of said first lever, and links pivotally connected to saidfinger-lever and the standard, substantially as described.

4. A detachable bott-le-stopple, comprising a clamp, a standard risingtherefrom, a lever pivoted to the upper end of the standard, a stopplesuspended from the inner end of said lever adapted to close the mouth ofthe bottle, a spring interposed between the lever and stopple, afinger-lever pivotally connected to the outer end of said first lever,and a link connection between said second lever and the standard forminga toggle for operating the first lever, substantially as described.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I affix my signaturein presence of two witnesses.

THEODOR HENTGEN.

In presence of- JACQUES MERSCH, T. H. ALEXANDER.

